The X-Factor Kentucky Must Fix to Bounce Back in 2025”
LEXINGTON — Mark Stoops isn’t mincing words anymore.
After Kentucky’s stunning 4–8 collapse in 2024, the longest-tenured coach in the SEC has spent the offseason admitting things had to change — including the very culture he once prided himself on building.
But when you strip away the narratives and coaching quotes, there’s one clear X-factor Kentucky must fix if it wants to return to bowl eligibility in 2025: the run game.
Last season, Kentucky averaged just 3.9 yards per carry and finished with a negative rushing differential — opponents outgained them on the ground by 16 yards per game. For a Stoops-coached team that still leans on conservative, ball-control football, that’s a recipe for disaster.
Now compare that to the 2021 Wildcats — the last time Kentucky won 10 games. That team ran for just under 200 yards per game, allowed just 122 per outing, and finished with a 77-yard rushing advantage on average. The per-carry difference? 5.1 yards gained vs. 3.9 allowed. That’s domination.
It’s no coincidence that Chris Rodriguez Jr. was the focal point of that attack. In 2025, the Cats will likely turn to transfers Dante Dowdell, Zach Calzada, or returners Jamarion Wilcox or Jason Patterson to bring that physicality back. Expect a rotating machine of running backs with Kentucky's depth at the position.
On the other side of the ball, the defensive front has to toughen up. Kentucky’s run defense was gashed in key SEC games — giving up 280 to Georgia, 257 to South Carolina, and 241 to Louisville. A new-look defensive line must step up and allow the linebackers to get in the gaps. In turn the linebackers have to get tackles.
It’s not about gimmicks or air raids for Stoops. The Wildcats' blueprint hasn’t changed. If Kentucky is going to get back to .500 or better, it’ll be built on toughness in the trenches.
In short: if Kentucky can run it and stop the run again, the Wildcats will be bowling. If not, the heat under Stoops’ seat may boil over, even with his massive buyout on the books.